Leadership blog - 26.11.20

Lately, I've had the pleasure of being able to report on some great progress in relation to delivering our ambitious, social and economic regeneration plans for the city and its people.

Sunderland has been named the Smart City of the Year, we've won numerous awards for our exciting new buildings and infrastructure schemes, and we've launched the masterplan for Riverside Sunderland which is regarded as one of the most exciting regeneration sites in Britain.

This all bodes incredibly well for our city's future and that of its residents, and we will continue to work tirelessly alongside our partners and communities, to realise our vision and ambitions for Sunderland to become a connected, international city providing opportunities for all.

But to get there, we must see off the worst stages of this pandemic and that means all continuing to do our bit and working together.

I've been very proud of how the vast majority of Sunderland people have followed the rules and guidance in very difficult circumstances, for what has now almost been the whole of 2020. 

I know it hasn't been easy and people are tired of it, but we mustn't give up now and risk throwing away all the efforts and sacrifices people have made. There appears to be a chink of light with the recent vaccine breakthroughs but even if these get to be rolled out in the not too distant future, it won't be an overnight cure and we will need to continue to act responsibly, be safe, look after our own health and be considerate of everyone around us, for some time to come.

Unfortunately, infection rates are currently still high in our region and across much of the country, so we must continue to fight this dreadful virus and do all we can to keep children learning in school, get all our businesses back open and enable friends and family to be in some way reunited. 

In the meantime, we'll keep on doing everything we can to bring a bit of good cheer and a boost to people's spirits and on Thursday, the countdown to Christmas in Sunderland officially began. Obviously it was disappointing that we couldn't all get together in Keel Square for the lights switch-on, but as with all our other events this year, we're not letting Covid-19 get in the way, and we're running a whole Christmas programme online for people to enjoy from the comfort of their own homes. 

Speaking of Keel Square, I also wanted to pay tribute to the wonderful John Hays, Freeman of the City of Sunderland and founder and managing director of Hays Travel, who died while doing the job he loved at the company's headquarters, on 13 November. 

John truly inspired people and made them smile wherever he went, and in tribute to him and his incredible work, including supporting young people through the Hays Travel Foundation, the city's landmarks will be lit up in blue and orange on 24 and 25 November. 

He was a very genuine, caring and humble man who did great things, becoming a hugely respected and accomplished figure in the global travel industry and always proudly flying the flag for Sunderland. He will be very sadly missed and I know his wife and Chair of Hays Travel, Irene, his family, the Hays Travel team, and his many other friends and colleagues, are in the thoughts of people right across the city as they continue his amazing legacy.

Please everyone, continue to keep yourselves safe, follow the rules, keep on doing your bit and look out for, and look after, those around you.

Cllr Graeme Miller

Leader of the Council